WATCH: Akash Deep makes his Test debut against England, no-ball costs him his first wicket
Ben Stokes has won the toss in Ranchi and has decided that England will bat first on a track that he recently referred to as “unlike something I’ve ever seen”. He reiterated […]
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Feb 23, 2024 10:02 am
Akash Deep (Source – X)
Ben Stokes has won the toss in Ranchi and has decided that England will bat first on a track that he recently referred to as “unlike something I’ve ever seen”. He reiterated during the toss that he wasn’t sure how the pitch would behave but still believed that batting first was a straightforward decision.
England had already announced their playing XI yesterday, giving two chances to the side that received a heavy thrashing last week in Rajkot. Mark Wood and Rehan Ahmed were the unfortunate ones to make way for Ollie Robinson and Shoaib Bashir. Bashir, the young off-spinner has already played a game on this tour and had a decent outing while the 30-year-old Robinson will be playing his first professional game in almost 7 months, having been laid low by an injury he sustained during the Ashes.
Akash Deep earns Cap No. 313
India on the other hand, have made one change to the team, as they had to with Jasprit Bumrah being given a rest. As such, Bengal and Royal Challengers Bangalore pacer, Akash Deep will be making his international debut. Akash becomes the 313th player to represent India in the longest form of the game. He received his cap from head coach, Rahul Dravid in the presence of his family who had come to witness the special occasion. It will certainly help his nerves that he has the company of his RCB teammate, Mohammed Siraj on debut.
At the toss, skipper Rohit Sharma admitted that he too, would have batted first had he won the toss citing the dryness and cracks as the reason. Rohit asserted that he was proud of the way the team played in the previous two games, especially the youngsters and hoped for a similar showing in this contest.
In other news, England’s leg-spinner, Rehan Ahmed has left Indian shores and gone back home owing to personal reasons. The visitors have opted against naming a replacement for the teenager. Meanwhile, Akash Deep nearly got his first Test wicket as he bowled Zak Crawley, however, the celebration didn’t last long as the umpire signalled it a no-ball.
Check out the video here:
Akash Deep pulls out a corker on an in-seamer, and Zak Crawley is cleaned up for 4.
